Dec
13
Borrow, Rent, or Buy
Reference:
(Walter, Claire. Gear Talk. Scuba Diving: Everything you need to know to get started (and keep going). United States: Ragged Mountain Press, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2000.)
Jan
31
The recent introduction by Speedo of the shark-skin mimicking swimsuit has been getting criticism due to the fact they are bending the laws of the swimming community. The world of competitive swimming has always been a lucrative one with swimmers going as far as shaving off all body hair and others in efforts to get the few milliseconds that may signify a win. The introduction of the suit has resulted in a few seconds of speed but many nations who could not afford such expensive swim wear are calling it foul.
Research into such types of clothing that reduces drag in the water has been considered to be the next step in the evolution of the swimming industry when the shark’s skin caught their attention. With barbs that point opposite the direction of the water, they act as mini-wings that dissipates drag and turbulence making swimming less tiresome and minimizing drag.
Water is denser than air thus harder to go through which makes each and every second count when it comes to competition swimming. Live in the pool would never be the same right after these high-tech suits were introduced, just hope everybody can afford them so all could swim a bit faster, for the record that is.
Aug
15
Image source:www.flickr.com
The two main obstacles to every paddler’s advancement is the shortage of boating buddies as well as the lack of skill development. It certainly is more enjoyable to paddle with others but this is not the only impetus propelling one’s search for a paddling companion. Kayaking and canoeing in groups is a simple matter of safety as well as the best way to improve one’s skills. Every whitewater kayaker knows the disappointment of finding out that the local river is at optimal conditions only to remember there is no one to go with. Regardless of the level at which you canoe or kayak, this list of 5 suggestions will help you not only find new paddling friends it will also help you further hone your skills. Go to Canoe and Kayak Festivals & Expos. Join a Local Canoe and Kayak Club. Join the American Canoe Association and the American Whitewater Association. Try Out Other People’s Canoe and Kayak Gear. Take a Canoe or Kayak Paddling Lesson.
Apr
17
Abundant (some would say excess) information on equipment is found in dive magazines and on the Internet – and most of it is aimed at men. Struck by the inequities of just men evaluating equipment for magazine test reports and the inappropriateness of not much gear designed for women’s bodies, dive instructor Jennifer King decided to do something about the situation.
“I started diving in 1980 in cold water and had to tough out equipment issues – wetsuits and BCs that wouldn’t fit and all that,” she recalls. “When I took my instructor course, I was thrown I with the guys. We took turns being the student and the instructor. They think differently from us.”
King began campaigning for women’s voices to be heard in the dive industry, and in 1993 she spear-headed the Women’s Equipment Test Team (WETT) to evaluate equipment then on the market and to encourage the development of functional gear for women. The dive industry’s first response is what WETT calls the SAP Principle – Small and Pink. Companies would take a piece of low-end equipment, make it “small and pink,” and call it a woman’s model. Thanks to the efforts of King and the WETT, more quality, performance equipment sized for women is now available. “In the mid-1980’s, 20 percent of divers were women,” King says, “and now it’s 40 to 45 percent. We hope that the equipment issue is solved some of this.”
Reference:
(Walter, Claire. Gear Talk. Scuba Diving: Everything you need to know to get started (and keep going). United States: Ragged Mountain Press, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2000.)
Continued from Gear Talk